In moments of displacement, stories are not the same, but what unites them is that women, especially mothers, suddenly find themselves facing doubled responsibilities, between fear for their children and the struggle to survive under harsh conditions. Among the many stories that emerged from the roads of displacement in Lebanon, the stories of three women stand out, revealing how war can reshape the very meaning of motherhood.
Repeated Displacement and Relentless Fear
Zahraa Harb, a pregnant woman displaced from the town of Harouf in southern Lebanon, recounts that displacement was not a single event, but a series of continuous escapes in search of a safer place. She says:
“At first, we moved to Saksakiyeh, but the area came under threat, so we had to flee again toward Hammana with my sister.”
The movement was not just a change of location, but a physically and mentally exhausting experience, especially with the symptoms of pregnancy. She adds:
“The cravings were extremely difficult, I was very tired on the road, and I didn’t have my medications with me because we left in a hurry.”
She describes the road as long and harsh, where she was unable to sleep despite her exhaustion, while pain accompanied her throughout the journey. She also notes that fear was present in every moment, saying:
“On the road, there was tension and indescribable fear. I have two children, and on one hand I try to be strong for them, but on the other hand I don’t feel safe at all.”
She explains that those around her tried to help as much as possible, but her physical condition made things harder. She adds:
“Everyone was sympathetic and tried to help me, but the cravings were very difficult, and I could barely move.”
She concludes:
“I was not prepared for any of this. I felt like I had hit a wall. But in the end, may God help everyone.”
There is nothing suitable for a pregnant woman,
and there is no level of care like the one available at home.
Sakina Farhat, six months pregnant, describes displacement as a long journey of anxiety and constant thinking. She says:
“It was a very exhausting period. I was thinking about everything, my children, the fatigue, the long sitting. I stayed in the car for 25 hours, and I simply cannot sit that long.”
As the journey dragged on, fear grew inside her, especially with the possibility of a sudden delivery. She adds:
“I started imagining that I might give birth now while I am still in the sixth month. I kept asking myself: where will I go, and what will I do?”
After arriving in Beirut, she could not find a suitable place, so she had to stay in a small home with her husband’s family, where three families live in a limited space. She explains:
“There is nothing suitable for a pregnant woman, and there is no care like what you have at home.”
Being far from her own family increased the psychological pressure. She says:
“I started thinking about the things I didn’t bring, how I will give birth by C-section, and how I will move afterward. My mother is very far away, I cannot reach my siblings, and there is no one close to me.”
She concludes with both bitterness and hope:
“If a normal person thinks like this, what about me while I’m pregnant and my emotions are doubled… I hope the war ends so I can return to my village and give birth in my home.”
Birth Under Pressure and Constant Danger
In a more intense experience, Yara, who was displaced from the southern suburbs of Beirut to Khaldeh, recounts how her displacement coincided with the moment of her delivery on the first day of the war. She says:
“On the first day of the war, I was about to give birth, and it was very difficult to find a hospital that would accept me within my health coverage.”
After great effort, she managed to enter a hospital at high cost, which she could not afford without multiple interventions. She adds:
“After a lot of struggle and many calls, I managed to get admitted, even though the costs were extremely high for me.”
But the suffering did not end after childbirth. Her baby needed an incubator that was not available, forcing her to transfer her to another hospital, where she stayed for a full week. Later, she moved to Bchamoun under conditions not suitable for a newborn. She says:
“Nothing is properly prepared. Even water gets cut off sometimes, and I was very afraid that my daughter might catch an infection.”
Indeed, her daughter was hospitalized again, increasing her psychological pressure. She concludes with visible anxiety:
“My daughter is now in the hospital for the second time, and I feel like my nerves can no longer handle it. If things continue like this, I might have to take sedatives.”
Compounded Health Risks
Dr. Shadi Fakih, a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, explains that pregnant women living through displacement and war face compounded health and psychological risks due to continuous stress, physical exhaustion, and lack of regular medical care. He clarifies that psychological effects during pregnancy already exist even under normal conditions, such as mood swings or prenatal and postnatal depression, but these symptoms intensify significantly during displacement.
He adds that continuous stress directly increases health complications, including a higher risk of preeclampsia, weakened immunity, increased infections, as well as complications related to poor nutrition and lack of medical follow-up. He also notes that stress does not only affect the mother, but can extend to the fetus, increasing postnatal anxiety and behavioral or concentration issues later on. He emphasizes that pregnant women in displacement conditions require special care and consistent medical follow-up, which is often unavailable.
Difficult Field Reality
Hussein Tormos, a representative from the Faculty of Health and a member of a field team monitoring conditions in shelters in Metn El Aala, says that the health response for displaced people began as an initiative by health students in cooperation with specialized doctors, to follow up on cases inside schools and shelters.
He notes that the first thing that drew the attention of medical teams was the high number of pregnant women who arrived without any basic medical supplies. He adds:
“Many pregnant women left their homes without medications, vitamins, or even the simplest essentials that help them during pregnancy.”
Many pregnant women left their homes without medications, vitamins, or even the most basic necessities for pregnancy.
He explains that this situation caused major difficulties in the early days of displacement, before teams were able to gradually provide medications and essential supplies. He also mentions that teams worked to provide necessities for women who had recently given birth, such as beds and mattresses, despite the difficult conditions inside schools.
He recalls a painful incident:
“There was a woman with three newborn twins. After days of exhaustion and displacement, she fell asleep for a moment while breastfeeding her baby, and when she woke up, the baby had passed away.”
He stresses that such cases reflect the level of physical and psychological pressure mothers are enduring, adding:
“Our teams are constantly on the ground to monitor cases, and we try to intervene immediately whenever any emergency occurs.”
Continuous Psychological Pressure
Psychologist Batoul Ali explains that displacement leaves a compounded impact on pregnant women due to their need for stability and a sense of safety during this sensitive phase. She notes that the loss of this stability affects sleep and nutrition, and increases anxiety and constant thinking, especially about childbirth.
She adds:
“A pregnant woman during displacement constantly wonders: how will I give birth, where, and who will be with me, especially if she has not prepared any of the baby’s needs.”
She confirms that anxiety extends to the fear of being unable to provide basic needs for the newborn, and becomes even worse for first-time mothers. She also notes that the absence of a husband or primary support figure increases psychological pressure, explaining:
“At this stage, a woman greatly needs support, especially someone who listens to her and allows her to express her feelings.”
She points out that reactions to displacement vary depending on personality, but anxiety and stress remain common among most cases.
Motherhood no longer appears as merely a biological experience or a passing stage, but transforms into a daily act of resistance against fear, loss, and uncertainty. Between a long road, temporary shelter, and an exhausted body, these women try to create a new life for their children, even from the heart of destruction. Details differ from one story to another, but the shared reality remains the same: motherhood tested under fire, reshaped in the harshest conditions, where a woman has nothing but her resilience and her determination to ensure her children continue to live, no matter the cost.
